The First Day of the Rest of our Lives
by splotdog
Summary: Todd is awake, Viola is well and Ben is alive. But what happens next? How do they go from there? What will New World be like for the rest of their lives? My thoughts of what should happen after Monsters of Men finishes.
1. Day One

"Viola?"

I jump forward in my chair and look down at Todd, lying in the same place he has for weeks now. But now his eyes are open and looking around the room desperately. And his Noise is groaning in pain but at the same times it's filled with relief. Relief that he's made it, relief that he's here and as his eyes meet mine, relief that I am, too.

I stoke a hand across his face then turn around quickly, ready to shout for Ben, but then he speaks again. And his voice is so quiet, so confused that I can barley here it above his Noise. "Viola. Viola, yer here. Yer really here." And his noise glows happy, so happy I feel that I can't really look away from it again.

"Of course I am. I told you Todd Hewitt, I told you that I aint never leaving you again, ever." I smile at Todd, _my _Todd and he smiles back. He starts to move closer to me but quickly grimaces and his Noise yelps with pain.

"I feel like I've been shot, Viola. It doesn't feel so good."

I stand up quickly, "I can get you something for the pain, and I should tell Ben that you're awake. He's here too. Everyone is, everyone's waiting for you." I smile at him again as his Noise brightens up just at the sound of Bens name, but as I turn to leave the tent I here his Noise saying my name. Saying it over and over again, almost as if he can't really believe it's me. I reach the opening of the tent and quickly turn back to him, his Noise still filled with so many emotions at once and I say it again, one last time so he knows it's true; "I _aint_ leaving you Todd Hewitt."

* * *

><p>"Ben! Ben, he's awake, he's finally awake!" I smile as I run up to Ben to tell him the news, so excited I nearly knock over a group of Spackle on the way. But as Ben turns to me, he doesn't look half as happy as I am. To be honest he just looks plain exhausted, and I don't blame him. The new settlers have only been here for a couple of days and they're still not used to the Noise, still not used to the ROAR of everything.<p>

_Are you sure? _he says, _Are you sure it isn't just his noise again? It's been getting louder and closer for days now._ And that's when I realise that Ben isn't just tired, he's giving up hope. He's giving up on the thought of the settlers ever being able to just be left to themselves, giving up on the prospect of a new built town (after the old one had been completely destroyed by the floods) and he'd almost given up on Todd ever waking up. But Todd _has_ woken up.

"I'm sure Ben, it's really him. He's awake but he's in pain. I need to get him something for the –"

_I'll get him some._ I jump and look up at 1017 as he shows us that he's willing to help. Willing to try again to show how sorry he really is. I nod hesitantly, but I still nod. I still say that it's okay and his Noise shows that he is grateful. But I don't want his thanks.

_Thank you Viola, thank you for letting him help._ Says Ben calmly, as if nothing else has been said at all.

"Don't you understand Ben? He's awake. Todd is okay, he made it, he –" I stop there, as Ben's eyes widen. As if he's hearing me for the first time ever. And then he's running faster than anything, running towards the tent.

I smile, yet again, as I hear both his Noise and voice shouting "TODD!"


	2. Day Two

(TODD)

My chest is burning but not half as much as it did yesterday, I still can't believe I'm really here tho, as I remember more and more of what happened that day by the ocean, it seem impossible. And it makes me almost grateful for the pain. It reminds me that it's all real, that it aint just something I made up meself.

Viola walks in holding out a small tub of something I don't rekognise. I stare at it and try to make out the label but it's no use cuz tho I want to-

I still can't-

And I wish I could.

But I still can't read.

**(shut up, please shut up)**

"It's for yer chest." Viola says as she reads my Noise. "It should soothe the pain."

"I don't want it." I say, trying to sound strong but failing. Her eyes fill with sympathy as she sits down on the chair next to where I've been lying all these past weeks, and where, since yesterday, I've been propped up against the pillows.

"Todd, it's okay to be in pain. You don't have to hide anything from me."

"I can hear everything outside, Viola, people are waiting to see me. I don't wanna seem –" weak. I close my eyes so I don't have to see her face no more. Cuz her eyes have so much hope in em. And her smile is so warm, so caring. But I don't deserve any of it. Cuz I got shot by a Spackle.

But it wasn't just any Spackle.

It was _him_.

And I know that I deserved it.

"It wasn't like that Todd! it was an accident. He thought you were the…the Mayor." She stops right there because she know that she made a mistake. And then she sighs. "He wants to speak to you. 1017. He wants you to forgive him."

I open my eyes again and stare at her, **_me _ forgive _him_?**

* * *

><p>I don't realise that I'm actually asleep until I wake up to the sound of his Noise. He look weak and sad and so desperate it pains me. My eyes examine his body and come across his band, the band I placed there, scaring him for life. The skin around it is glowing red I'm no healer but I know it's infected, and I know that that aint good.<p>

I raise my eyes till they're level with him. And it's the first time I really see him.

And his eyes, they're craving forgiveness.

But I don't know why.

_I_ banded him, _I_ attacked him, _I_ killed so many of his kind.

But then his Noise opens.

And I see what he saw.

I see him shooting me.

_I am sorry_ he says. _It was a mistake_. But I can tell that he aint so sure it was. His Noise opens again and I can feel what he felt as he shot me. How he felt like he finally had revenge. Then I see Viola in his noise. She's yelling at him for what he's done, telling him I meant no harm.

And then I remember the other Spackle. The one fishing by the river. I remember how I killed him and it felt _good_ at first. But then she spoke to me, like she spoke to him. She told me that the Spackle meant no harm. And I realised it. And I regretted it. And-

I would give anything to have that Spackle forgive me.

But that won't happen, cuz he's dead.

I aint tho.

I aint dead-

And as long as I aint dead-

_I can **forgive**._

(VIOLA)

I watch as 1017 ducks out of Todd's tent. his Noise glowing more than I've ever seen it. He goes straight to Ben, and asks for some bandages for his band. I hear Todd calling and I quickly walk to his tent.

"What are you doing?" I ask, shocked as I see Todd sitting up on his bed, both feet on the floor. I grab his arm as he stands up and wobbles slightly. "You aren't fit to be walking." I say gently, his Noise yelps in pain.

"I want to see everyone!" I says as he flops back onto the bed. "I want to see Wilf, and Lee, and the thousands of new people that I aint met yet. I'm bored of this room, Viola, we didn't end a war so we could lie around all day."

I nod understandingly, "Let me give you something for the pain, and you can meet the settlers tomorrow Todd."

"Tomorrow?" he groans.

"Tomorrow."

I turn to leave but he stops me as I reach the opening.

"Will you still come with me, Viola? Will you still start a new life with me?"

I turn back and look into his eyes as he says, "It's just, I don't think I like cities much."

I smile at him, feeling better than I've felt in so long. And as I walk away from the tent I can still hear my last word bouncing in his Noise.

**Yes.**


	3. Day Three Todd

**AN: I can't believe I got her name wrong! I feel so dumb! But anyway, here's the corrected version. Chapter four will be up by Sunday at the latest, I promise.  
><strong>

(TODD)

"We wouldn't take long, only a few hours." Viola says to Ben as I just sit and watch the two debate. "And, the wars over now. There isn't anything to worry about."

__There's always something to worry about___,_ he replies as he look me up and down, I can see myself in his Noise and I've looked better. __But, you two made it through a lot worse. I guess you can survive a trip up the hill to see Lee and Wilf._._

"And the settlers?" Ben raises and eyebrow. "They'll be mostly gone by the end of the week!" My Noise fills with questions marks at this but both Ben and Viola ignore me.

__It's a long way. I don't think he could cope.__

"Hey!" I respond, a little bit irritated. "I am here ya know! How about you ask me what I think?"

"He'd be fine, he could ride Angharrad."

__You'd have to take the back roads_._ Says Ben, sounding unconvinced. __The main ones were destroyed.__

"I know that Ben!" responds Viola, sounding as irritated as me but trying to be patient, "I've been here with you the whole time. I _know_ what's been going on."

I feel myself wince and my Noise goes grey, she's been here with him. Waiting. Waiting for me. Waiting and hoping that she's saved me. She squeezes my hand and looks me in the eye.

"It looks like I managed it, again." She smiles sympathetically. "But, recently, there's been a lot going on."

_I suppose we better tell you all about it._

I smile weakly and nod. "So, the settlers have been here for a week now?"

__Six days to be exact._ Says Ben, sounding tired just thinking about it. _The entire population of the ship was awoken on day two. Day three, the Noise started.__

"Oh, the _Noise_! It was so loud! No one could control their Noise and secretes they'd kept all their lives just started spurting out. Everyone was so _scared_." She pauses and I just know she's remembering Bradleys Noise when it started. Remember the thoughts that _he_ couldn't hide.

The thoughts of her, the thoughts of Simone.

Simone, who died because of the actions of one person-

Well, two.

I look up to Viola but she just closes her eyes and shakes her head. She shakes her head and takes in a deep breath before carrying on.

"Then Ben spoke to them all, and, they noticed how controlled his Noise was. It seemed to calm the a bit." I feel my Noise swell with pride at this. "He told them everything, all about the war, and the cure, and… you."

_I__ was__ expecting __horror. __Expecting__ them__ to__ leave,__ shocked__ at__ how__ awful__ we __had__ been._

"But?" I ask as both of them pause again.

"But the just excepted it all. They said it was… understandable. Would you believe it?"

_They wanted the cure at first,but then I told them about the Spackles connection,about how I thought we could use it. And they seemed to think that I was right, that Noise would keep us all safe. Maybe even prevent anymore wars._

I nod at this, understanding completely. Because, Noise, as awful and loud as it is, could be used to our advantage. Because, if people have nothing to hide then there's no point in the cure, and, as the war taught us, it's only people that have something to hide that are a danger.

"But, if they were all calmed down so quickly. why are you so tired?"

"Everything's still a mess!" answers Viola. "People are happy to help but that doesn't make food and water easier to find, it doesn't make flooded towns get better!"

_And there is so much to organise. The settlers are preparing to leave and start new lives, build new cities, but they need help._

"They all want to meet you, Todd."

"Why? I'm no one important."  
>"You know that's not true."<p>

"What am I then?" I ask, sounding more worried then I probably should.

_A leader._

I look straight and Ben and see pride in his Noise. I look away because I've been told this so many times before, but it still aint true. It aint.

"I aint no leader." I say quietly.

But I'm remembering something.

Something someone said.

And it aint the Mayor, or Ben, or even Viola.

It's my ma.

It's the last words she ever wrote to me. The last thing she ever wished for me, and, the first.

_Yer gonna have to be the one who makes it come right, you hear? Yer a native born New Worlder, so you don't have to repeat our mistakes. You can shake off the past and maybe, just maybe you'll bring paradise to this place._

I look down at my hands as I start to wring them nervously.

"You've already made it right." Viola says after a long silence. "You made it right by defeating the Mayor, But, you could make it better. If you wanted to." She moves my head so I'm looking into her eyes and smiles. "You could make everything perfect, if you wanted to." And suddenly it's all over my Noise, my mind is made up.

And I find myself smiling in spite of everything else. I find myself feeling a little excited.

"She was right about you, Todd Hewitt. You will bring paradise to this place."


	4. Day Three Viola

**AN: Sorry it's been so long, and I know it's not the greatest but I just can't leave things half finished. I might also upload 'Todd's Speech' for pure self indulgence. Anyway, thanks for reading! Hope you enjoy the last chapter!**

(VIOLA)

I just can't stop smiling.

Because it feels like us again.

Todd and Viola against the world, and I wouldn't want it any other way.

_Boy colt,_ neighs Angharrad's Noise and Todd rubs her ears, saying her name in response. His Noise is calm as we ride through the forest, so far I've lead us around as much of the war damaged town as possible but I know that sooner or later we're going to pass something.

I wish he didn't have to see it though. I wish I could protect him from even more pain.

"Viola! I aint got a clue where I'm going so you better keep up a bit better." I look up to Todd, a few feet in front of me, and he frowns before brining Angharrad back around and towards me. "What're you thinking about?"

I sigh as I lead us left. "It isn't pretty down there."

"New Pressintown never was very pretty. I think it's best for all of us that it's gone."

"But Todd, all those people. Innocent people."

Almost immediately Todd's Noise clouds up with memories. I see a man floating upside-down. Another with a young child asking about electricity. A women clutching her arm while looking Todd straight in the eyes and asking-

"How can you live with yerself?" I jump as I realise it's Todd speaking now. His voice is slow and measured, each of is words are chosen carefully. "If, if you focus on the dead, then who's focused on the living? I think we have to make sure that no one died for nothing. This entire World's fallen, it's fallen pretty hard. But, now it's time to get back up. "He veers off a little to the side and looks down at some remains of what was once part of New Pressintown. "I mean, don't forget them, but don't let them haunt you neither. Make their sacrifice worthwhile. Live the life they died dreaming of."

He looks over at me, trying to find more words. I find some for him.

"And you're going to- to what?" I ask. A smile erupts on his face and he comes back to the same path as me.

"Make this the planet the settlers have been searching for. We're always saving each other Viola, now it's time to save everyone else."

After that we carry on in silence, there aren't any more words that need to be said. We travel like this until I catch a glimpse of two familiar faces.

* * *

><p>"Lee!" I call out as we reach the top of the hill. He smiles as he sees me in Wilf's Noise and then takes in a breath as Todd appears behind me.<p>

Wilf speaks first.

"Todd? Is at you Todd? Oh my." He turns to me and shakes his head. "No one tells Wilf nothing. You were as good as gone last I eard."

Todd gets down from Angharrada and walks towards Wilf, grinning. "Wilf, you didn't really think a gun would stop me did ya?" He looks over at Lee and his smile disappears. "No, I got off lightly."

Lee walks over to join Todd and Wilf. "None of that now Todd. You've got to be cheerful. There's an entire nation out there waiting to hear from you. And trust me, they've heard enough woe."

Todd looks over to the city of tents, and half built homes below. There're more people down there then I've ever seen in my life and I know that Todd is thinking the exact same thing because his Noise immediately turns bright yellow and all sorts of crazy things start spinning round his head. He quickly grabs onto a near by tree to keep himself up and smiles grimly. "Thousands. To hear from me. Thousands. Me."

"Todd?" I walk slowly towards him, a little bit concerned. "Todd, are you okay?" His Noise is too much of a mess to really make any sense of the situation.

"What do they want me to say?" He looks over at Lee, his eyes suddenly panicked. "I can't even read. I can't talk to… to thousands. And the entire city's been destroyed. I'd have no way for them to hear me."

"They just want to know that what Ben said is true. They want to be sure that you're the good guy, and that this place is safe, and that all the mistakes from the past are behind us now."

"Yeah. And as for them earin' ya, you don't need ta worry yerself withat. We've got a spaceship in the middle of the place down there, and that spaceship's got the biggest and best sound system ever. The whole World would be able to hear ya." At this Todd's Noise goes even more insane and Wilf just laughs. "Would ya look at at. The great Todd Hewitt has stage fright. I'll leave you and your, Viola to talk. Meet ya down at the ship in a few minutes. Come on Lee."

They both lead off down the hill laughing to themselves, I turn back to Todd who is now sat on the floor leaning against the tree. I smile as I sit down next to him and look around. His Noise has now calmed down a bit, but it's still panicked and frantic. Phrases and faces float around his head and I look over at him, and look straight into his eyes. I know exactly what he's thinking without having to search for it. Because he's **my** Todd and I always know what he's thinking.

"You can't let me down Todd. And you can't let Ben down, or your mother, or any of those people out there. It's impossible. As long as you're yourself, you'll be fine."

He nods and looks up at the sky. "I know. But, couldn't we just freeze time for a moment? Take it slow?"

"Sure we could." I say as I take his hand and pull him up. "But we've never gone slowly before, have we? I personally don't see the point in changing our habits now." He sighs but then nods again and looks straight forward down the hill.

"Okay. Let's go start the rest of our lives."


End file.
